Elevator belt surface protection for installation

ABSTRACT

A belt of an elevator system includes one or more tension elements extending longitudinally along a length of the belt, and an elastomeric jacket at least partially enveloping the one or more tension elements. The jacket defines a traction side configured to be interactive with a traction sheave of the elevator system and a back side opposite the traction side. A protective tape is applied to the elastomeric jacket at the back side. A method of assembling an elevator system includes forming a belt, and installing the belt in a hoistway of the elevator system. One or more additional components of the elevator system are installed in the hoistway. A protective tape is removed from a jacket of the belt after installation of the one or more additional components is completed.

BACKGROUND

Exemplary embodiments pertain to the art of elevator systems. Moreparticularly, the present disclosure relates to health monitoring oftension members of elevator systems, for example, of coated belts orropes.

Elevator systems utilize one or more tension members operably connectedto an elevator car and a counterweight in combination with, for example,a machine and traction sheave, to suspend and drive the elevator caralong a hoistway. In some systems, the tension member is a belt havingone or more tension elements retained in a jacket. The tension elementsmay be formed from, for example, steel wires or other materials, such asa carbon fiber composite. The tension elements support the load and thejacket holds the tension elements and transfers shear forces to thetraction sheave.

Handling of the belt during installation of the belt can result indamage to the belt, and the belt may be further damaged duringinstallation of other elevator system components in the hoistway. Suchdamage may include cracks in the jacket and more severe damage such asbroken or damaged tension elements. The belt damage has significantimpact on belt life and replacement cost.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

In one embodiment, a belt of an elevator system includes one or moretension elements extending longitudinally along a length of the belt,and an elastomeric jacket at least partially enveloping the one or moretension elements. The jacket defines a traction side configured to beinteractive with a traction sheave of the elevator system and a backside opposite the traction side. A protective tape is applied to theelastomeric jacket at the back side.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape is a clean peel tape.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape includes a protective layer configured to be one or moreof abrasion resistant, scuff resistant or break resistant, and anadhesive layer located between the protective layer and the jacket tosecure the protective tape to the jacket.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a high strength polymer material withreinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a polypropylene with glass yarn reinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments the adhesivelayer has multiple layers.

In another embodiment, an elevator system includes a hoistway and anelevator car movable along the hoistway. A belt is operably connected tothe elevator car to move the elevator car along the hoistway. The beltincludes one or more tension elements extending longitudinally along alength of the belt and an elastomeric jacket at least partiallyenveloping the one or more tension elements. The jacket defines atraction side configured to be interactive with a traction sheave of theelevator system and a back side opposite the traction side. A protectivetape is applied to the elastomeric jacket at the back side.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape is a clean peel tape.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape includes a protective layer configured to be one or moreof abrasion resistant, scuff resistant or break resistant, and anadhesive layer located between the protective layer and the jacket tosecure the protective tape to the jacket.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a high strength polymer material withreinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a polypropylene with glass yarn reinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments the adhesivelayer has multiple layers.

In yet another embodiment, a method of assembling an elevator systemincludes forming a belt including one or more tension elements extendinglongitudinally along a length of the belt, and an elastomeric jacket atleast partially enveloping the one or more tension elements. The jacketdefines a traction side configured to be interactive with a tractionsheave of the elevator system and a back side opposite the tractionside. A protective tape is applied to the elastomeric jacket at the backside. The belt is installed in a hoistway of the elevator system. One ormore additional components of the elevator system are installed in thehoistway. The protective tape is removed from the jacket afterinstallation of the one or more additional components is completed.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape is applied to the jacket via one of a roll or a precutlength of protective tape.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape is a clean peel tape.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective tape includes a protective layer configured to be one or moreof abrasion resistant, scuff resistant or break resistant, and anadhesive layer located between the protective layer and the jacket tosecure the protective tape to the jacket.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a high strength polymer material withreinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments theprotective layer includes a polypropylene with glass yarn reinforcement.

Additionally or alternatively, in this or other embodiments the adhesivelayer has multiple layers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following descriptions should not be considered limiting in any way.With reference to the accompanying drawings, like elements are numberedalike:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an elevator system;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of an elevator systembelt;

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a tension elementfor an elevator belt;

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of a tensionelement for an elevator belt;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a protective tapeof an elevator belt; and

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of a method of installation of anelevator system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A detailed description of one or more embodiments of the disclosedapparatus and method are presented herein by way of exemplification andnot limitation with reference to the Figures.

Shown in FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary traction elevatorsystem 10. Features of the elevator system 10 that are not required foran understanding of the present invention (such as the guide rails,safeties, etc.) are not discussed herein. The elevator system 10includes an elevator car 14 operatively suspended and/or propelled in ahoistway 12 with one or more tension members, for example belts 16.While in the following description, belts 16 are the tension membersutilized in the elevator system, one skilled in the art will readilyappreciate that the present disclosure may be utilized with othertension members, such as ropes or braided tapes. The one or more belts16 interact with sheaves 18 and 52 to be routed around variouscomponents of the elevator system 10. Sheave 18 is configured as adiverter, deflector or idler sheave and sheave 52 is configured as atraction sheave, driven by a machine 50. Movement of the traction sheave52 by the machine 50 drives, moves and/or propels (through traction) theone or more belts 16 that are routed around the traction sheave 52.Diverter, deflector or idler sheaves 18 are not driven by a machine 50,but help guide the one or more belts 16 around the various components ofthe elevator system 10. The one or more belts 16 could also be connectedto a counterweight 22, which is used to help balance the elevator system10 and reduce the difference in belt tension on both sides of thetraction sheave during operation. The sheaves 18 and 52 each have adiameter, which may be the same or different from each other.

In some embodiments, the elevator system 10 could use two or more belts16 for suspending and/or driving the elevator car 14. In addition, theelevator system 10 could have various configurations such that eitherboth sides of the one or more belts 16 engage the sheaves 18, 52 or onlyone side of the one or more belts 16 engages the sheaves 18, 52. Theembodiment of FIG. 1 shows a 1:1 roping arrangement in which the one ormore belts 16 terminate at the elevator car 14 and counterweight 22,while other embodiments may utilize other roping arrangements.

The belts 16 are constructed to meet belt life requirements and havesmooth operation, while being sufficiently strong to be capable ofmeeting strength requirements for suspending and/or driving the elevatorcar 14 and counterweight 22.

FIG. 2 provides a cross-sectional schematic of an exemplary belt 16construction or design. The belt 16 includes a plurality of tensionelements 24 extending longitudinally along the belt 16 and arrangedacross a belt width 26. The tension elements 24 are at least partiallyenclosed in a jacket 28 to restrain movement of the tension elements 24in the belt 16 with respect to each other and to protect the tensionelements 24. The jacket 28 defines a traction side 30 configured tointeract with a corresponding surface of the traction sheave 52. Aprimary function of the jacket 28 is to provide a sufficient coefficientof friction between the belt 16 and the traction sheave 52 to produce adesired amount of traction there between. The jacket 28 should alsotransmit the traction loads to the tension elements 24. In addition, thejacket 28 should be wear resistant, fatigue resistant and protect thetension elements 24 from impact damage, exposure to environmentalfactors, such as chemicals, for example.

Exemplary materials for the jacket 28 include the elastomers ofthermoplastic and thermosetting polyurethanes, thermoplastic polyesterelastomers, ethylene propylene diene elastomer, chloroprene,chlorosulfonyl polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate, polyamide,polypropylene, butyl rubber, acrylonitrile butadiene rubber, styrenebutadiene rubber, acrylic elastomer, fluoroelastomer, siliconeelastomer, polyolefin elastomer, styrene block and diene elastomer,natural rubber, or combinations thereof. Other materials may be used toform the jacket material 28 if they are adequate to meet the requiredfunctions of the belt 16.

The belt 16 has a belt width 26 and a belt thickness 32, with an aspectratio of belt width 26 to belt thickness 32 greater than one. The belt16 further includes a back side 34 opposite the traction side 30 andbelt edges 36 extending between the traction side 30 and the back side34. While six tension elements 24 are illustrated in the embodiment ofFIG. 2, other embodiments may include other numbers of tension elements24, for example, 4, 10 or 12 tension elements 24. Further, while thetension elements 24 of the embodiment of FIG. 2 are substantiallyidentical, in other embodiments, the tension elements 24 may differ fromone another. While a belt 16 with a rectangular cross-section isillustrated in FIG. 2, it is to be appreciated that belts 16 havingother cross-sectional shapes are contemplated within the scope of thepresent disclosure.

Referring now to FIG. 3A, the tension element 24 may be a plurality ofwires 38, for example, steel wires 38, which in some embodiments areformed into one or more strands 40. In other embodiments, such as shownin FIG. 3B, the tension element 24 may include a plurality of fibers 42,such as carbon fiber, glass fiber aramid fiber, or their combination,disposed in a matrix material 44. Materials such as polyurethane,vinylester, or epoxy may be utilized as the matrix material, as well asother thermoset materials and, for example, thermoset polyurethanematerials. While a circular cross-sectional tension element geometry isillustrated in the embodiment of FIG. 3B, other embodiments may includedifferent tension element cross-sectional geometries, such asrectangular or ellipsoidal. While the cross-sectional geometries of thetension elements 24 in FIG. 2 are shown as identical, in otherembodiment the tension elements' cross-sectional geometries may differfrom one another. Further, while the present disclosure is described inthe context of a belt 16, one skilled in the art will readily appreciatethat the disclosure may be readily applied to elevator systems 10utilizing other types of tension members, for example a coated rope.Further, the present disclosure may be utilized with not only a tensionmember, but also a compensation member.

Referring again to FIG. 2, it is desired to prevent damage to the belt16 during handling and installation of the belt 16, and installation ofother elevator system 10 components in the hoistway 12. To achieve this,a protective tape 60 is applied to the belt 16 over the jacket material28 at the back side 34 of the belt 16, opposite the traction side 30. Insome embodiments, the tape 60 is a clean peel tape which may be easilyremoved when desired, such as when installation of the elevator system10 is completed. When utilizing a clean peel structure, the protectivetape 60 is removable leaving minimal or no adhesive residue on the backside 34, which if remained would reduce elevator system 10 performance.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a cross-sectional view of an exemplaryprotective tape 60 is illustrated. The protective tape 60 includes aprotective layer 62 and an adhesive layer 64, with the adhesive layer 64configured to be affixed to the back side 34 of the belt. In someembodiments, the protective layer 62 includes a high strength polymermaterial with reinforcement, such as a polypropylene with glass yarnreinforcement. The protective layer 62 enhances abrasion resistance,scuff resistance and break resistance of the protective tape 60. Theadhesive layer 64 includes, for example, a multi-layer synthetic rubberadhesive to prevent delamination of the protective tape 60 from the backside 34 of the belt 16. The adhesive is removed from the back side 34when selected, without leaving adhesive residue on the back side 34.

In one embodiment, the protective tape 60 is commercially-available 3M™Polyurethane Protective Tape 8547. The exemplary protective tape 60 is aremovable, flame resistant tape made from an abrasion resistantpolyurethane elastomer that resists puncture, tearing, abrasion anderosion. It has been utilized as a temporary, flame retardant shield toprevent weld splatter from damaging glass, ducting and other componentsduring welding operations.

Referring now to FIG. 5, illustrated is a method of elevator system 10installation 100 utilizing the protective tape 60. The protective tape60 is applied to the back side 34 of the belt 16 at block 104. In someembodiments, the protective tape 60 is applied at a manufacturer site,and may be applied from, for example, a roll of protective tape 60 at atakeoff section of a manufacturing line, or by applied a cut-to-lengthprotective tape 60 to the back side 34 post-manufacture of the belt 16.This may be performed at the factory or on site at installation time.

In block 106, the belt 16 is installed to the hoistway 12 with thetraction side 30, opposite the back side 34, interactive with thetraction sheave 52. In block 108, installation of other components ofthe elevator system 10 is completed, with the protective tape 60providing damage protection to the belt 16 during installation of thecomponents of the elevator system 10. At block 110, once installation ofthe elevator system 10 components is completed, the protective tape 60is removed from the belt 16, so that the belt 16 is ready for service inthe elevator system 10.

Use of the protective tape 60 applied to the back side 34 of the belt 16provides protection to the jacket 28 and the tension elements 24 of thebelt 16 thereby preventing loss of service life of the belt 16 due toinstallation damage. This results in greater elevator system 10performance and reduced installation and operational costs of theelevator system 10 because of a reduced rate of replacement of the belt16 due to such installation damage.

The term “about” is intended to include the degree of error associatedwith measurement of the particular quantity based upon the equipmentavailable at the time of filing the application.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the presentdisclosure. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” areintended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearlyindicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification,specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations,elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,element components, and/or groups thereof.

While the present disclosure has been described with reference to anexemplary embodiment or embodiments, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents maybe substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope ofthe present disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made toadapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the presentdisclosure without departing from the essential scope thereof.Therefore, it is intended that the present disclosure not be limited tothe particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated forcarrying out this present disclosure, but that the present disclosurewill include all embodiments falling within the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A belt of an elevator system, comprising: one ormore tension elements extending longitudinally along a length of thebelt; an elastomeric jacket at least partially enveloping the one ormore tension elements, the jacket defining a traction side configured tobe interactive with a traction sheave of the elevator system and a backside opposite the traction side; and a protective tape applied to theelastomeric jacket at the back side.
 2. The belt of claim 1, wherein theprotective tape is a clean peel tape.
 3. The belt of claim 1, whereinthe protective tape includes: a protective layer configured to be one ormore of abrasion resistant, scuff resistant or break resistant; and anadhesive layer disposed between the protective layer and the jacket tosecure the protective tape to the jacket.
 4. The belt of claim 3,wherein the protective layer includes a high strength polymer materialwith reinforcement.
 5. The belt of claim 4, wherein the protective layerincludes a polypropylene with glass yarn reinforcement.
 6. The belt ofclaim 3, wherein the adhesive layer has multiple layers.
 7. An elevatorsystem, comprising: a hoistway; an elevator car movable along thehoistway; a belt operably connected to the elevator car to move theelevator car along the hoistway, the belt including: one or more tensionelements extending longitudinally along a length of the belt; anelastomeric jacket at least partially enveloping the one or more tensionelements, the jacket defining a traction side configured to beinteractive with a traction sheave of the elevator system and a backside opposite the traction side; and a protective tape applied to theelastomeric jacket at the back side.
 8. The elevator system of claim 7,wherein the protective tape is a clean peel tape.
 9. The elevator systemof claim 7, wherein the protective tape includes: a protective layerconfigured to be one or more of abrasion resistant, scuff resistant orbreak resistant; and an adhesive layer disposed between the protectivelayer and the jacket to secure the protective tape to the jacket. 10.The elevator system of claim 9, wherein the protective layer includes ahigh strength polymer material with reinforcement.
 11. The elevatorsystem of claim 10, wherein the protective layer includes apolypropylene with glass yarn reinforcement.
 12. The elevator system ofclaim 9, wherein the adhesive layer has multiple layers.
 13. A method ofassembling an elevator system, comprising: applying a protective tape toan elastomeric jacket at a back side of a belt, the belt including: oneor more tension elements extending longitudinally along a length of thebelt; and an elastomeric jacket at least partially enveloping the one ormore tension elements, the jacket defining a traction side configured tobe interactive with a traction sheave of the elevator system and a backside opposite the traction side;
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein theprotective tape is applied to the jacket via one of a roll or a precutlength of protective tape.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein theprotective tape is a clean peel tape.
 16. The method of claim 13,wherein the protective tape includes: a protective layer configured tobe one or more of abrasion resistant, scuff resistant or breakresistant; and an adhesive layer disposed between the protective layerand the jacket to secure the protective tape to the jacket.
 17. Themethod of claim 16, wherein the protective layer includes a highstrength polymer material with reinforcement.
 18. The method of claim16, wherein the protective layer includes a polypropylene with glassyarn reinforcement.
 19. The method of claim 16, wherein the adhesivelayer has multiple layers.
 20. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: installing the belt in a hoistway of the elevator system;installing one or more additional components of the elevator system inthe hoistway; and removing the protective tape from the jacket afterinstallation of the one or more additional components is completed.